Leather jackets can cover up a lot
by RubinAmigo
Summary: AU. When Castiel's niece can't sleep he tells her a story about how Dean saved his teddy-bear in Kindergarten and became his best friend. The memories of that day and a phonecall from Castiel's sister suddenly make the two men question their relationship. Destiel
1. Chapter 1

When I had the idea for this I thought it would be a kid!fic. Turns out the story had different plans :) I also intended this as a one-shot but I doubt that's going to happen. I'm just not good at writing one-shots, I guess.

Anyway, I hope you will enjoy this story. Happy reading :)

* * *

"Uncle Cas? Can you tell me another story?" a soft voice called from the top of the stairs, interrupting the ball game Cas was watching with his best friend, Dean.

"Sorry about that," Cas said to Dean, before looking up at his niece. She was standing at the top of the stairs, clutching her favorite doll to her chest.

"Claire, what is wrong? It's very late," Cas told her gently, as he walked up the stairs to bring her back to her room and tuck her in.

"I can't sleep. I'm scared. What if no one wants to be my friend there?" Claire asked her uncle in a pitiful voice.

Claire was spending a week with Castiel because her family was moving to the other side of the country and her parents needed some time to move all their stuff into the new house. They would pick up Claire just in time for her to start Kindergarten.

"Why wouldn't anyone want to be your friend?" Castiel asked the little girl, remembering how his big sister, Claire's mom Anna, had said those exact same words to him about 15 years ago.

"I don't know. I don't want to go," Claire just said and Cas took her hand and led her back to her bed.

"How about I tell you a story about how I met my first friend in Kindergarten and then you will go to sleep, okay?" Cas asked her and Claire looked up at him with big eyes. She nodded slowly and Cas started telling her the story.

"It was a long time ago. I was about as old as you are now and I, too, was just about to start Kindergarten and I was scared as well," Cas started, letting the story take him back to the day he had met his best friend.

_He was the youngest of his siblings by far. Anna, his next older sister, was 16 years old and she was the one who had been looking after him most of the time, since their mother had died two years ago. But now it was time for him to start Kindergarten. Cas was scared as he walked through the door, tightly holding on to Anna's hand. He didn't know anyone there, what if no one wanted to be his friend?_

"_Don't go," he told his big sister, pleading with her._

"_I have to go, Cas. I have school. But you will be fine. You'll make lots of new friends." She bent down and gently kissed the top of his head before carefully freeing her hand from his grip. Cas gave her a doubtful look but didn't argue any further and let her leave._

_He looked around the room and studied all the other kids that were there. Who would be his friend? Uncertain he clutched the one thing that meant the world to him, his teddy-bear, to his chest. It was not a normal teddy and his brothers teased him about having chosen that particular bear, but Cas loved it._

_The bear had a lighter patch of fur on his head, as if he had blond hair. But that wasn't all, unlike the usual brown eyes his teddy-bear had emerald green ones._

_Finally Cas dared to take a few steps into the playroom but he didn't get very far. _

"_Who are you?" a little boy with dark hair asked him. He was dressed in all black, staring darkly at Cas, blocking his way._

"_I'm Castiel." The little boy held on to his teddy even more._

"_You're a baby," the other boy stated and a few kids snickered. "Can't even leave mommy without your little baby toy." _

"_Be nice, Crowley," the teacher admonished but she didn't have time to make sure that Crowley really left the new kid alone. She was too busy greeting the newcomers. Therefore she didn't see, when Crowley reached out and grabbed the teddy-bear in Castiel's arm. Cas refused to let go and held on to his bear with all his strength. Eventually the fabric of the toy couldn't withstand the force of the two boys pulling in opposite directions. With an awful ripping sound a long tear appeared on the teddy's back, causing the stuffing to ooze out._

"_Nooooo," Cas cried horrified, staring at the damage. Crowley grinned and finally let go of the teddy-bear. His job was done. _

_Cas dropped down on the floor right where he'd been standing. He held his teddy close, crying silently. The quiet sobs were shaking his little body, while Crowley and his friends were laughing at him._

_After just a moment Cas felt a hand on his shoulder. "Ssshh, it's going to be okay." Cas looked up to see a boy with eyes the same shade of green as his teddy's. _

_Something about the boy made Cas believe him. He wiped his nose on his sleeve and stood up. The boy now turned to face Crowley. "Leave him alone, you mean troll," he called before turning his back on a stunned Crowley to talk to Cas again._

"_Don't worry about him. I'll protect you. You are my friend now," the boy stated._

"_I...I am?" Cas asked carefully._

"_Yes," the boy nodded. "My name is Dean. What's your name?"_

"_Castiel. But my brothers call me Cas."_

"_Hi Cas." Both boys smiled. "Let me see your teddy," Dean said, holding out his small hand._

"_He is hurt," Cas said, on the brink of crying again._

"_I can help him," Dean said and reached into his small backpack. He pulled out a teddy-bear, showing it to Cas. "Look, it looks almost like you."_

_The teddy-bear had dark, tousled hair and bright blue eyes. It also had clothes and was currently dressed in a tan trench coat that reached almost to its feet. _

"_Here, I have another coat for my teddy-bear but you can have it." Dean showed Cas a small leather jacket that looked like it had been worn a lot. He quickly put the jacket on Cas' teddy before handing it back to Cas._

"_See, all better," Dean smiled. Cas nodded in awe._

"_Thank you."_

"That's how Dean and I became friends. And we're still friends today," Castiel ended his story. "Now, go to sleep. You will be fine. Who wouldn't want to be friends with a sweet girl like you?"

"Okay. Goodnight," Claire yawned. She finally closed her eyes. Cas waited by her bed until her breathing evened out and he was sure that she was really asleep. Then he got up and quietly left the room.

In the hallway he almost bumped into Dean who was leaning against the wall next to the door.

"I came upstairs to tell you that the game is over and I'm going home. But I couldn't help overhearing what story you were telling Claire." Dean smiled. "I haven't thought about that day in a long time."

They walked down the stairs together, lost in thought as they remembered how their friendship had started. "I think I might still have that teddy in a box in the attic. Did you know I never got the tear fixed? The leather jacket was just too perfect for it," Cas told Dean.

"Yeah, a leather jacket can cover up a lot," Dean said as he pulled on his own leather jacket that he always wore in public because it made him look tough, as well as hiding the scars on his left arm from a car accident a few years ago.

Cas was always tempted to touch Dean's arm, right where the scars were, to tell him that they weren't so bad and didn't need to be hidden. With a little imagination they looked almost like a hand print. Misshapen, but recognizable. It made Cas curious to see how it compared to his own hand. But he was afraid to go that far. He was afraid Dean would think it was strange, to say the least.

"It sure does," Cas replied. "Hey, do you remember that one time we actually let our teddies get married?" Cas laughed as he remembered that scene.

"Yes, I do. We were just copying the girls who let Ken and Barbie get married. Freaked out the adults though, since our teddies were both male." Dean chuckled. "And we didn't understand what all the fuss was about."

"I still don't understand the fuss they made." Cas shrugged and looked at his friend, waiting for his reaction but at this moment his phone rang in the living room and he had to go and answer it before Dean had a chance to say anything else.

"Hello?"

"Hi, Cas. It's Anna. Sorry to call so late, I forgot about the time difference. Claire is probably in bed already, isn't she?"

"Yes, she's sound asleep. Sorry. But she's fine. She misses you though."

As Dean walked into the room, Cas automatically put the phone on speaker, so Dean could hear both ends of the conversation. They always did this as they both hated for the other to feel left out.

"Aww, poor baby. But it's only for a few more days. Give her a hug from me in the morning, will you?"

"Of course I will. How are things with the house?"

"We're getting there. It's exhausting though. Thank you so much for looking after Claire."

"No problem."

"But enough about us. Tell me about your night. Is Dean there with you?"

"Yeah, he was just about to leave actually," Cas answered and was about to tell his sister that the phone was on speaker and she could talk to Dean as well if she wanted to, but Anna ploughed on, leaving Cas no chance to say anything else.

"Oh really? Shame. I thought you'd finally get it on. You don't have to worry about Claire, she has a very deep sleep."

"Anna..." Cas tried but Anna wasn't finished yet.

"Oh, come on. Don't tell me there's nothing going on between you two. Everyone can see it. The way you sometimes stare at each other for minutes? The stolen glances when you, or him, think no one is watching? It's so obvious. You spend almost you're entire free time together. If that isn't love..."

"ANNA!" Cas had raised his voice to stop his sister, although it was already too late. Dean was staring at him with wide eyes, his mouth moving but unable to form words.

"Anna, stop. You're on speaker," Cas said wearily.

"Oh." There was a pause. "Well, I guess I better go now. I bet you two have a lot to talk about now." Anna hung up and Cas slowly put down the phone. He looked up at Dean, trying to find the right words to say.

"Dean, I...I don't know what say. I'm sorry, I don't know..."

"Don't say anything, okay?" Dean told him, taking a step back as Cas tried to get closer. "What have you been telling Anna? Why does she think that we, that I..." Dean shook his head as if he was trying to shake off the things that Anna had said.

"Look Cas, we've been friends for so long and we've always talked about everything. But right now I think I need some time alone. I'll call you," Dean finally said before turning to leave. He was in such a rush to leave that he didn't even say goodbye.

Cas watched the door close behind his best friend and he heard the car leaving the driveway before he was able to move. Slowly he went back into the living room and heavily sat down on the couch. He could still see the imprint of Dean's body on the cushions.

Before he knew what he was doing he found himself in the attic, looking through old boxes until he found the old teddy-bear. It was a little dusty but otherwise looked just like it always had. It looked just like Dean. With the teddy in his hand he returned to the living room and sat back down on the couch.

He leaned back and closed his eyes. What a mess. It wasn't like he had never had those thoughts himself but he'd anticipated this reaction from Dean. Anna wasn't wrong in what she'd said and Cas had often wondered if he and Dean could possibly be more than friends. But now he could feel lucky if they'd even be friends anymore. Why hadn't Anna just kept her mouth shut?

Cas sighed, trying to think of ways of fixing things with Dean. He hadn't really done anything wrong, but he doubted Dean cared much about that at the moment. He had looked so shocked.

Meanwhile Dean was driving around town, without really having a destination. He had just needed to get away from Cas, from what Anna had said. He just needed some space right now. He had been about to leave to go home when Anna had called but now he didn't want to go home. Eventually his aimless driving brought him to a remote park and he stopped. He stayed in the car and just sat there, thinking about what had happened.

First Cas reminding him of the same-sex-marriage they had performed for their teddy-bears and then Anna saying that everyone could see some kind of sexual attraction between him and Cas. It had been too much at once.

After sitting there for a while he started to calm down until he could finally think straight again. And reluctantly he had to admit that maybe Anna had a point. He also realized that he had been unfair to Cas. It wasn't his fault that Anna had said those things. He needed to apologize to Cas. Even if he didn't know if he'd be able to talk about the things Anna had mentioned yet, he at least needed to save their friendship.

Two hours after he'd stormed out, he found himself in front of Cas' front door. Since he didn't want to risk waking up Claire he decided to use the hidden spare key instead of ringing the door bell. He knew where the key was. He'd been the one to suggest the hiding place after Cas had locked himself out for the third time.

Quietly he entered the house. "Cas?" he called softly as he noticed light in the living room. When there was no answer he went into the room where he found Cas asleep on the couch, holding the old teddy close to his chest.

He looked so peaceful and adorable, it warmed Dean's heart. He really couldn't risk losing this friendship. But he decided that their conversation could wait till the next day, Cas obviously needed sleep.

Dean was about to leave but he noticed that Cas was shivering. He looked around for a blanket to make sure that his friend would be warm and comfortable but he couldn't find one. For lack of anything else resembling a blanket he shrugged off his jacket to cover Cas with it. He'd just pick it up in the morning.

When he spread the jacket over Cas, the sleeping man stirred and blinked up at him in confusion. Those big blue eyes in combination with the tousled dark hair made Cas look vulnerable and Dean immediately felt protective of him, even though it had been him who'd hurt Cas in the first place. But now he could kind of see what Anna had been talking about. He just couldn't take his eyes off Cas.

"Dean?" It was a question, hopeful that this was real and not simply a dream.

"Yes, Cas. It's me. I came back to apologize for running out like I did. I guess I kinda panicked and I'm sorry. It wasn't your fault. And I'm sorry for waking you up." He sat down on the couch next to Cas.

"No, don't worry about that. I'm glad you came back. I wasn't sure if you would ever come back," Cas admitted and it stung Dean that he'd given his best friend this impression.

"I guess I just freaked a little. Anna caught me by surprise." They sat in silence for a while.

"I see you found your old teddy-bear," Dean finally said when the silence became uncomfortable.

"Yes," Cas smiled. "It still looks the same."

"It does." Dean took the bear to have a closer look at it. "I think I need to go and look for mine now. The two belong together. Just like the two of us."

"Really?"

"Of course," Dean confirmed. He returned the bear before he took a deep breath to start talking about the things Anna had said on the phone. They talked the entire night deciding that maybe there really was some truth to what Anna had said. But no matter what would happen in the future, they would always be friends.

When the sun rose, Cas made coffee. They hadn't decided how their relationship would progress but they were sure they would figure it out eventually.

After the coffee Dean decided it was time to finally go home. He really needed some sleep. By the door the two men stopped to talk a little more. They became so engrossed in their conversation again that they didn't notice they were being watched.

Finally Dean ended the moment. "I really should go now. I need a few hours of sleep and then I'll look for my teddy." He smiled and stared into Cas' eyes for a while until Cas broke the eye-contact by nodding.

"Okay, be safe. And good luck finding the bear."

They looked at each other again for a while longer before Dean finally opened the door to leave.

"Aren't you going to kiss?" a high voice asked from the direction of the stairs, making them both look up. Claire was standing there, arms folded across her chest.

Cas was the first to shake off the surprise. "Why do you say that?" he asked.

"When mom and dad look at each other like that, they always kiss," she explained.

"Even a five-year-old notices," Dean whispered astonished. Aloud he said, "Well, if that is the case, we don't want to disappoint you."

He pulled a very surprised Castiel towards him and gave him a gentle kiss on the lips.

"Hmm, that tastes like more. When your niece is gone." Dean smiled. Cas could only nod and stare after his friend who was already walking towards his car to finally actually go home.


	2. Chapter 2

So it took a while, but here it is. Chapter 2. It is the last one (for now). If I'm really motivated there is always the chance for more but I don't want to make any promises. Anyway, thanks for reading and I hope you all enjoy this :)

* * *

When Dean came home, he was too elated to sleep. Therefore he decided to start looking for his old, trench coat wearing teddy bear right away. The only problem was, that he hadn't seen the bear in god knows how many years and consequently had no idea where to start his search.

After emptying every drawer in his apartment it was pretty clear that the teddy wasn't there. All Dean had accomplished was to make a big mess. He looked around and yawned.

"Nah," he mumbled, after briefly considering picking everything up again. Sleeping was far more tempting than cleaning.

He woke up a few hours later when his phone rang. He tried to ignore it for a while but apparently the caller was very persistent so Dean reluctantly climbed out of bed to find his phone in the mess he had created.

"Hi Cas," he answered it after checking the number.

"Hi Dean. Did you get some sleep?"

"A little," Dean replied with a yawn. "What's up?"

"I just wanted to make sure everything is good between us after..."

"After the kiss?" Dean asked when Cas didn't finish his sentence. There was nothing but on the other end of the line.

"Cas? Are you nodding at the phone again?"

"Oh, sorry. Yes, I am."

"Thought so. Don't worry Cas. I'm fine. I'm pretty sure I am done with freaking out. Again, sorry for that. But it would be good if we could take things slowly until we figure out what exactly we are."

"Agreed," Cas replied. "There is another reason I called you though," he continued after a pause.

"Oh! And what reason is that?" Dean asked curiously.

"Claire and I are going to the zoo today and we were wondering if you'd like to come with us."

"Isn't it a little too early for that?" Dean yawned again to get his point across.

"It's two in the afternoon," Cas replied very matter-of-factly.

"Oh." Dean was surprised and risked a glance at his watch. Cas was right. It really was 2 o'clock, and yet Dean felt like he'd only had about two hours of sleep.

"I guess that's a 'No' then," Cas said with soft laugh.

"I'm afraid so," Dean agreed. "I spent the morning looking for my teddy bear and I'm going to spend the rest of the day dealing with the chaos I created in the process."

"That's alright. Did you at least find the teddy bear?"

"Not yet. But there are still a few more places I can look at."

"Good, because Claire found my teddy this morning and she said it needs a friend."

"Of course it does. I'll do my best to find it as soon as possible."

"And until then Claire and I will keep my teddy company. We had a lovely tea party this morning. Claire thinks it looks just like you. But that was before she put a pink bow on its head. I stopped her before she could take the jacket off and exchange it for a pink dress though." Cas was laughing at the memory and Dean joined in.

"The teddy will be forever grateful."

"Well, I was just afraid it would lose too much stuffing if she took the jacket off," Cas teased.

"Right. I'm sure that was the only reason," Dean replied dryly.

"Absolutely," Cas confirmed. "Anyway, I should go now. Claire can't wait to see the giraffes. Good luck finding the teddy."

"I'll let you know as soon as I found it. Have fun at the zoo and say 'Hi' to Claire for me."

"I will. Talk to you later."

Now, after having talked to Cas, Dean felt awake and started to get rid of the worst of the chaos in his apartment. But he didn't finish the task because he was itching to continue looking for his teddy. He knew he had some old boxes in the basement with stuff he had never unpacked. Maybe the teddy was in one of them.

An hour later Dean was coughing and completely covered in dust and cobwebs. He was certain he had discovered at least one previously unknown species of spiders but he hadn't found his teddy. Now there was only one place left to look.

His father's place. The house he grew up in. There was probably some of his old stuff still there, hidden somewhere in the attic.

He wasn't looking forward to that visit. Ever since the big fight after his high school graduation, his relationship with his dad and his little brother Sam had been rather icy. And all just because he had wanted to become a journalist and not a mechanic in his dad's garage, like his dad had expected.

Of course joining the family business had never been expected of Sam. Sammy was too clumsy around cars and he was too smart anyway, which was why he was about to graduate high school early and then go on to college to become a lawyer.

This difference in the treatment of him and his brother was the reason why Dean felt resentment towards his dad and his brother and had kept contact to either of them to a bare minimum during the past two years. And now he had to go and face them both to get his stuff.

After thinking for a while about what to tell them about the reason for his visit, he decided to just not explain anything at all. It wasn't any of their business. He'd just say that he wanted to pick up the last few boxes with his old stuff, which were still collecting dust in the attic.

"That is great timing," John Winchester told his son on the phone, when Dean called to announce his visit.

"Sam's new girlfriend, Jessica, is here as well and she's cooking dinner tonight. I've been told she makes the best meat loaf in town. We can all sit down for a nice family dinner and talk. That is long overdue anyway."

"Uhm, okay. I'll be there at seven," was all Dean could say. He had not expected a dinner invitation and was completely overwhelmed by his father's reaction to his call.

When Dean arrived at his father's house that night he was greeted by a strangely cheerful John Winchester. Apparently having a female influence in the house again was good for him.

"Come on in, boy. Dinner is about to be served. I already found all your boxes and brought them into the garage for you, so we have more time to eat and talk."

"Uhm, thanks dad. That was very – thoughtful of you."

Dean entered the house and looked around. It was clean and smelled nice. There were even vases with fresh flowers placed here and there, making the place bright and friendly. It looked like Jessica spent a lot of time here.

John led the way to the dining room where he and Dean sat down at the table while Jessica and Sam served the food.

"Wow, that smells delicious. I guess I chose the right night to meet you, Jessica," Dean told the pretty blond girl, when she walked into the room with the meat loaf.

"Yes, you definitely have. Although I have to admit that Sam here actually helped a lot. He made the cornbread. But it is nice to finally meet you. I have heard so much about you."

Dean struggled to keep a straight face when she said this. He dreaded to find out what she might have been told. But before he had the chance to worry some more she put down the platter with the meat and hugged him affectionately.

Dean didn't have time to recover from this surprise attack before she continued talking. "You are a very talented writer. I have read a lot of your pieces," she said, referring to the freelance articles he sometimes wrote for the local newspaper to earn money for college. "I'm considering journalism myself; or maybe I'll become a nurse," Jessica added with a bright smile.

"Oh, uhm..." Dean didn't know what to say. This was all too unexpected. He had not been prepared for some friendly family time.

"She gave us one of your stories to read," John said into the silence. "The one about those kids hunting ghosts and recording it for a self-made internet-show. That was brilliant."

"The 'Ghostfacers'? Yeah, that one was a lot of fun. You liked that?"

"It made me realize that it was wrong to insist that you join my business. You are a talented mechanic but you are a brilliant writer. I'm sorry for trying to push you in a direction that wasn't right for you. You and Sam, you both deserve to do what you want to do."

"Thanks dad. I'm glad you're finally seeing things that way. But can we please eat now? I'm really hungry." His stomach rumbled as if to emphasize his words.

They all sat down and dug in. That conversation had been way more chick-flick-y than was normal for the Winchester family. The rest of the evening was rather pleasant. The food was as delicious as it looked and the conversation was light.

After dinner Sam helped Dean stack the boxes in his car.

"That's a great girl you found there. Take good care of her," Dean told his brother, as he was about to leave.

"I will. And I hope you'll find what you're looking for," Sam replied.

Dean nodded, then got into the car and drove off. He couldn't wait to search the boxes for the teddy-bear.

It took him quite a while to look through all his old stuff and Dean was about to give up and call it a night when he noticed a small bag at the bottom of the last box he searched. He took it out and slowly opened it. Inside he saw a flash of black and blue. A black-haired teddy-bear with brilliant blue eyes. Finally he had found it.

Carefully he lifted the bear out of the little bag to have a proper look at it. It looked just like he remembered it. And looking into the teddy's eyes felt almost like looking into Cas' eyes. Dean could get lost in them and forget everything around him.

This reminded him that he needed to tell Cas about his success. He immediately took a picture of the bear with his phone and sent it to Cas. Not five minutes later his phone rang.

"You found it!" Cas said by way of greeting.

"Yes, I did. Wasn't easy though." Dean laughed about Cas' excitement.

"Can you come over tomorrow? Claire wants to see the two teddies united and Anna is picking her up early Monday morning."

"Of course I can. I want to see the teddies reunited as well. And I want to see you again. But now tell me, how was the zoo?"

"Oh, the zoo was fun. Claire has a new favorite animal. Apparently giraffes are boring now. But huge turtles are 'cool'. I took a nice picture of her, sitting on one. A fake one of course."

"Sounds like a fun day," Dean remarked. "My day was pretty interesting, too."

They continued to talk for half the night. Cas told Dean a little more about the trip to the zoo and Dean told Cas about his family dinner. Eventually Dean just fell asleep and Cas decided that it was time for him to go to bed as well. He took the phone with him though, because he liked listening to Dean's soft breathing. It was the first night they 'slept together'.

When Dean woke up the next morning, he found that he was still holding the phone in his hand. He quickly checked to hear if Cas was still on the other end of the line but apparently the call had disconnected during the night. Dean knew Cas hadn't just hung up on him because he'd woken up once to hear a soft mumbling from his phone. Cas had been talking in his sleep. Dean had found that utterly endearing, not that he'd ever admit that, and had fallen asleep again with a smile on his face.

As soon as he had some coffee he called Cas to make plans for the day.

"Good morning, did you sleep well?" Cas greeted him cheerfully.

"Good morning to you, too. And yes I did. I also learned something interesting about you," Dean replied just as cheerfully.

"Oh really? And what's that?"

"Well, uhm, you talk in your sleep apparently. "Dean smiled at the memory. "But don't worry, I didn't understand a word of it. You were probably just making sounds. Although it almost sounded like some weird language."

"Really? Must have been Enochian," Cas joked and Dean chuckled with him even though he had no clue what Cas had just said.

"Anyway, you were probably wondering what time you should come over?" Cas asked, his voice hopeful as if he was secretly scared Dean might have changed his mind.

"As a matter of fact I was. Since Claire is leaving tomorrow morning you probably have to pack all her stuff and I don't want to be in the way."

"You're right, we are packing. Well, hunting down all her scattered toys, more like. But you can come over any time you like; you won't be in the way. Actually, it would be really nice if you could come some time this afternoon. Claire has another tea party planned for the teddies, so you better bring yours on time."

"I think I can manage that," Dean promised.

"Great. And then for dinner I thought we'd cook some burgers. Claire loves them just as much as you do and since it's her last night here..."

"Great idea. I'll bring the bacon," Dean told him, being well aware that Cas was prone to forgetting the most important ingredient for a good burger.

"Good plan," Cas agreed. "I'll see you later then."

"See you later. Can't wait," Dean replied and smiled as he hung up the phone.

He thought about just going over to Cas' place right after breakfast to help him and Claire with the search for all her toys but he ended up being quite busy the entire morning. First he moved the boxes he had brought home from his dad's house to another room to look through them and see if there was anything else that he wanted to keep, and then his brother called him to see how he was. Sam was thrilled that Dean was on friendly speaking terms with the rest of the family again so they talked for quite a long time to catch up on the entire time span since the fight happened.

In the end Dean promised to come over more often, especially if Jessica cooked dinner, because ultimately he wanted the same as Sam did, for them to be a family again.

By the time he hung up the phone he almost had to hurry to still make it to Claire's tea party in time. He quickly grabbed his teddy and rushed to Cas' place where a very impatient Claire greeted him.

"Hey Claire. I brought another guest for your party," he said, holding out the bear to her.

"Thank you," she beamed, taking the bear and hurrying upstairs to play with the teddies.

When Claire was out of sight Dean noticed Cas leaning against the wall, from where he had watched the short exchange between Dean and Claire.

"Hi," Dean said, blushing as the word almost caught in his throat when the memories of their kiss two days before came rushing back.

"Hi," Cas replied, pushing away from the wall to walk over to Dean who seemed rooted to the spot all of the sudden. He gave Dean a reassuring smile and when the other man didn't panic and run away again he put his hands on either side of Dean's face and stared into those emerald green eyes.

He could feel the stubble on Dean's cheeks against his palms and he felt Dean slowly relaxing as they looked at each other. Finally, when Dean wasn't holding every other breath anymore, he leaned in for a careful, gentle kiss.

This finally woke Dean from his paralysis and he wrapped his arms around Cas pulling him closer to him. He parted his lips to deepen the kiss and let their tongues meet. It felt good and they were both about to forget the world around them and get lost in the kiss when a sound from upstairs brought them back into the here and now.

"What is Claire doing up there?" Dean asked cautiously.

"No idea. We should probably go and check."

They went upstairs to see Claire peacefully having a tea party with their old teddy bears. The sound they had heard was merely her suitcase which she had knocked over during her playing.

"It's good to see them together again," Cas said, pointing at the bears.

"It is," Dean replied. "They've been apart for a long time."

For a while they just stood there and watched Claire play. They were both lost in memories and it felt comfortable to just stand there together and see a child enjoy the teddy-bears that had started their friendship all those years ago.

"I think the bears will be fine in her care," Cas finally said quietly and Dean nodded.

"I think you're right."

They went downstairs into the kitchen where Dean deposited the bacon he'd brought in the fridge.

"Cas, you got pie?" he asked happily surprised upon inspecting the other contents of the fridge. He pulled out the pie and put it down on the counter to find out which flavor Cas had bought.

"It's apple pie. And I really should have hidden it better," Cas said as Dean lifted the plastic cover to get to the delicious pastry beneath it.

"Okay, you can have ONE slice now. The rest is for later. For all of us," Cas gave in, knowing full well that he had no chance of getting between Dean and a slice of pie. When Dean had cut himself a slice, Cas quickly took the rest of the pie and put it back in the fridge to get it out of Dean's sight.

Then he just stood there there, watching his friend enjoy the pie. Dean had his eyes almost closed, a dreamy expression on his face. When he was finished he put his plate and fork into the sink and turned around to grin at Cas. A few crumbs of pie were still clung to his lips. Cas couldn't resist walking over to kiss those crumbs away, enjoying the lingering taste of the pie on Dean's lips.

His hands traveled up the sides of Dean's arms to caress the biceps that flexed when Dean loosely wrapped his arms around Cas' waist. Finally Cas felt bold enough to do what he'd been longing to do for a long time now. He gently pushed up the t-shirt sleeve on Dean's left arm that covered the scar there. Dean tensed but let him expose the marked skin. Cas gently caressed the raised scar-tissue and finally covered the entire section with his hand. His hand was just the right size to cover the hand-print-like scar.

For a moment Dean tolerated this before he turned away from Cas and pulled down his sleeve to cover most of the scar.

"Dean..." Cas reached for Dean but didn't touch him. He wasn't sure quite how to react.

"I'm sorry, Cas," Dean said quietly after a moment, still not facing Cas. "It's just this scar – I wish it would just disappear and not constantly remind me that I could have killed you in that wreck."

"But you didn't," Cas replied, now putting his hand on Dean's shoulder, turning the other man around so they faced each other again. Dean still avoided Cas' eyes but Cas continued talking. He had tiptoed around this for years and now was the chance to talk about the accident once and for all.

"You didn't kill me. I wasn't even hurt. And it wasn't your fault. That deer came out of nowhere. No one could have avoided it."

"But I should have done something. I should have avoided the tree somehow," Dean insisted.

"You did the best you could. And we were extremely lucky that neither of us got seriously injured. I didn't even get a scratch and you only have that scar which is not even from hitting the tree itself, it's from when I pulled you from the wreck and there were pieces of glass and metal everywhere. You see that scar and only think of what could have happened. I see that scar and am reminded that we both survived pretty much unscathed. You even rebuilt the car."

"I guess you're right," Dean replied but it lacked conviction.

Cas sighed and decided that he needed to be more convincing. He leaned forward, wrapped his arms around Dean's tense body and pressed his lips on Dean's. He didn't let up until he felt Dean relax against him and respond to the kiss. This time when Cas reached for the scar Dean didn't flinch or turn away.

When they broke the kiss they were both a little bit out of breath but smiling happily at each other. This conversation had been long overdue and finally Dean seemed to have let go of the guilt, at least to some extend. Cas was glad he'd finally been brave enough to make Dean listen and to not let himself be pushed away like he had before.

"Okay, I think we should start preparing dinner," Cas said after a short moment of silence.

"Very good idea," Dean agreed enthusiastically and immediately started looking for the meat so he could start preparing the burgers. Meanwhile Cas took care of the salad. Soon dinner was prepared and while Cas set the table Dean went upstairs to get Claire.

When he reached her room he saw that she had pulled most of her dolls from her suitcase again so she could have a party for the teddy-bears. Dean didn't quite know what it was about but when he asked her to come downstairs for dinner she insisted on bringing the bears with her and refused to move until he agreed.

Downstairs she put the teddies next to each other on a chair at the end of the table. "They don't want to be alone again," she told the two men very matter-of-factly. Then she sat down at the table and started to eat her burger.

Dean shrugged. "I think she has a point. I don't want them to be alone again, either." He sat down as well, took a burger, added several strips of bacon and dug in.

Cas sat down as well and piled food on own plate, though for him this meant less bacon and more salad, or 'rabbit food' as Dean always called it. But while they ate he couldn't stop watching Dean. He had always taken great pleasure in watching Dean enjoy his food, especially burgers and pie. So when he served dessert, he didn't mind getting the smallest piece. Seeing how much Claire and Dean enjoyed the pie was dessert enough for him.

"I'm stuffed," Dean said with a satisfied sigh after he finished his slice of pie, leaning back his chair.

"Me too," Claire added, copying Dean's pose.

Cas laughed. "Alright Claire. It is time for you to go to bed now. Your mom will be here very early tomorrow morning."

Claire pouted but she got up and went upstairs. "Don't forget to brush your teeth. I will be right up to tuck you in," Cas called after her.

"The teddies too?" Claire asked.

"Yes, I'll bring the teddies, too. But only if brush your teeth now."

Claire suddenly hurried upstairs to the bathroom while Cas and Dean quickly cleared the table.

"I should probably tell you that Claire pretty much unpacked all her toys," Dean said while he wrapped the remaining burgers in tin foil and placed them in the fridge.

"I expected that. Though I hoped she'd be busy enough with the teddies," Cas replied. "If you tuck her in, I'll pick up her toys."

Dean nodded. They finished cleaning the kitchen before they went upstairs where they found Claire ready for bed standing in the mess of her room.

"Okay, sweetie, let's get all tucked in," Dean told Claire and pulled back the covers so she could get into bed. Then he tucked the blanket tight around her small body, making sure she was warm and comfortable.

"And here are the teddies. They'll keep you company tonight." He placed the two teddies next to her pillow on her bed.

Claire immediately reached for them to make sure they were right next to each other. "They are in love," she explained in a serious voice. "They got married today."

"Did they now?" Dean asked, looking at Cas across the room, giving him a wink as they both remembered how they'd done the exact same thing as kids.

"They must be tired then. Good night teddies. And good night to you, munchkin," he said and pressed a soft kiss on her forehead. Then he got up to help Cas with the toys. But a small hand on his sleeve held him back.

"We need a story or we can't sleep," Claire told him, staring up at him with her big blue eyes. They were so much like Cas', he just couldn't refuse her this wish.

"Cas, do you..." he looked up but before he could even finish his question, Cas was already holding a book out to him. Dean took it and started reading. When he was done with the first page he checked if Claire was already asleep but her blue eyes still looked up at him so he continued reading.

Cas interrupted them after a while to say goodnight to Claire. "I'll see you in the morning, Claire. I'm going to bed now myself; I'm very tired. But you two finish your story." He kissed her forehead and left the room.

Dean hoped that Claire would fall asleep soon but she managed to stay awake until the story was finished. But in the time Dean needed to put the book away she finally fell asleep.

Dean smiled and quietly walked towards the door. She looked like an angel with her long curls spread around her face and the two teddies watching over her. After a moment of looking at her fondly he turned off the light and carefully closed the door to her room.

Then he went to Cas' bedroom where he found his friend fast asleep in his bed. "Unbelievable," he muttered. Cas had fallen asleep before his five-year-old niece. Dean chuckled. Without giving it any thought he undressed until he was wearing only boxers and his t-shirt and joined Cas.

The movement of the mattress woke Cas up for a moment. When he foun himself looking into Dean's green eyes a huge smile spread across his face. He rolled over a little further so he could reach Dean's lips to kiss him. It was a long, gentle and very comfortable kiss.

"Goodnight," Cas mumbled after a long moment, he eyes already half closed.

"Goodnight," Dean replied but Cas was already asleep again. Dean smiled and closed his eyes, falling asleep quickly as well, feeling warm and loved in a way he had never felt with anyone else before.


End file.
